China cannot build its own innovative system if it does not respect the intellectual property rights (IPR) of others, a top science official said yesterday.

"By protecting IPR, we are respecting knowledge and following the world's rule of play," Wan Gang, China's newly appointed minister of science and technology, said at a symposium in Beijing.

IPR protection was the highlight of the symposium on the construction of an innovative society. It was co-hosted by Science and Technology Daily - a newspaper affiliated to the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and Microsoft China Research and Development Group.

Wan also emphasized the possibility of China gaining a leadership position in the development of biotechnologies, new materials, and alternative energies.

Echoing the minister, Zhang Yaqin, senior vice-president of Microsoft and managing director of Microsoft Research Asia, said IPR protection is needed for the building of an innovative system in the country.

"Britain was one of the first countries to build a practicable patent protection system, which is why it became the world's economic center in the 18th and 19th centuries," he said.

Their remarks come on the heels of a review of China's innovation system by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

"Better protection of patents and other intellectual property" was outlined by the Paris-based group of 30 developed economies in a report issued in collaboration with the MOST.

The lack of adequate protection for patents and other innovations is a serious handicap in the country's innovation system, the report said.

(China Daily August 29 2007)